Heaven and Hell
by Marine Brother Shran
Summary: My version of the story. Shinji, Rei and Kaoru were childhood friends until the test activation incident. Now Shinji has returned, to find Rei, but different, and Kaoru is nowhere in sight. Full sum inside, some OOC, SR, Rated M for extreme violence
1. Prologue

**Heaven and Hell**

**Prologue**

**Summary: Shinji, Rei, and Kaoru were childhood friends until they were four. During that time they were carefree, happy, and lived out life like a normal person would. Until that fateful day in which Yui Ikari and Tomoyo Ayanami tested pilot Units 00 and 01, in which an accident occurred, separating the three of them. Now 10 years later, Shinji returns to Tokyo-3 upon the call of his father, and finds Rei, but to see that she was no longer the girl he once knew. As for Kaoru, he was no where to be seen. Now Shinji is thrown into a war in which he has to pilot Evangelion Unit 01 to protect mankind. Does he have the courage to do such an act, or will he be a coward and run away?**

**I hope that the summary was adequate. This is my take on the story in general, and there will be some parallels to the original story. Anyways, I hope that you enjoy my story, and now own with the prologue.**

_June 6th 2001_

"Congratulations Mrs. Ikari, it's a boy," a nurse happily announced.

"He's beautiful," a woman breathed out in amazement as she took the baby and held her son in her arms for the first time, "Gendo, look, he has your eyes."

"That he does," reaching out and gently placed a hand on his delicate head, "Welcome to the world, Ikari Shinji."

"Yui, he's gorgeous," a woman cried out. The two parents looked to the door to see a woman carrying two children enter. One was a blue haired girl, the other a grey haired boy, both of them with red eyes.

"Does he have the mark as well?" the mother of the twins asked.

Yui nodded, "Hai, three scars," she held her son close to herself, "Tomoyo-chan, I'm scared for them. That man said that Shinji, Rei, Kaoru along with the two others will somehow fight Adam's children."

"Shinji, that's a lovely name," Tomoyo replied as she held her children closer, "I don't like it either. But I don't think it can be helped. The messenger did say that The Dead Sea Scrolls will come to pass, and that we cannot stop it. 3 of the 5 chosen ones shall save this world, while one shall die fighting Adam's children, the other at the hands one the 3rd chosen."

Gendo gently squeezed his wife's shoulder, "They'll be fine Yui. We'll be there for him."

"I hope you're right, for their sake," she sighed out as she held her son's sleeping form closely to her.

_4 Years Later_

_August 21st 2005_

"Nii-san give that back," a red eyed, blue hair girl whined from a bench, at a grey haired boy, who also had red eyes.

"You want it; then come get it imoutou-chan," the boy teased, waving a red shoe above his head, while standing clear from his sisters flailing arms.

"Kaoru-kun, give Rei-chan her shoe," a brown haired blue eyed boy called out from a nearby swing.

The one called Kaoru looked to his friend, smiled, and said, "Why should it, Shinji-kun?" The boy merely pointed a stubby finger towards Rei. Kaoru turned his head to see his sister had started to cry.

Kaoru instantly panicked, "No, no, no, no, don't cry imoutou-chan," he hurriedly stated as he held out the shoe, but to no avail, as Rei continued to sob into her hands. Shinji shook his head and jumped off the swing, and slowly approached the desperate boy trying to appease his sister. He quickly pushed him aside, snatching the shoe from his hand as he does, and helps put on her shoes. Luckily it was simply a shoe with a button buckle so it was simple enough. Rei stopped crying when she noticed something on her foot. She looked up to see Shinji was standing in front of her with a broad smile on his face.

She sniffed a few times before saying, "A…arigatou, Shinji-kun." Shinji happily smiled and sat himself next to Rei, and the next thing he knew, Rei suddenly pounced on him, giving him a bear hug as best she could. From a distance, three adults laughed at the sight before them as they watched their children interact with one another, all three of them with broad smiles on their faces.

"They're so happy, so care free," Yui commented as she leaned onto her husband, who held her close.

"That they do," Gendo confirmed with a happy smile on his face as he watched his son interact with the twins.

"I can see a bright future for them if they make it out alive," said Tomoyo. 'Rei needs someone like Shinji. Kaoru can only do so much until she needs the shoulder of an outsider to cry on and the heart of that male outsider,' she added mentally.

"Today is the day, isn't it?" Yui asked after some time of silence as the three children played in the sand before lying on a patch of grass.

"Ah," Gendo replied as he nodded his head, "Today we test activate Units 00 and 01 while Germany Attempts Unit 02."

"I just hope nothing goes wrong Gendo-kun, Yui-chan," Tomoyo breathed out in anxiety.

"Same here, Tomoyo-chan," Yui quietly replied, Gendo grunting in agreement.

"Pretty sky Rei-chan," Shinji stated, pointing up towards the clear blue sky, as he, Rei, and Kaoru lay on the grass.

"Hai, it is Shinji-kun," Rei quietly replied as she slowly inched closer towards the object of her child-like attraction.

Kaoru noticed it but said nothing. Early on he found that his mind was a lot more developed than the average 4 year old, and he had a sixth sense of the nearby future. He sighed deeply, smiling a sad smile. 'Today Okaa-san will test Unit 00, so will otoutou-san's Okaa-san with Unit 01. I have a bad feeling about this. This may be our last time together like this. I hate this, knowing the future. I don't want this to end. I want to be there for them, especially if they fall in love.' He sighed mentally, 'I suppose that I have neither the power to stop this nor any choice but to follow this path at the moment. Goodbye sweet innocence, parting is such sweet sorrow.' Kaoru let a tear slide down his face for everyone he loved before resuming his childlike composure.

"Shinji, Rei, Kaoru, we're going to Gehrin! You do want to see the giant robots don't you?" All the children instantly jumped at the thought of seeing robots, and ran towards the three waiting adults, running into their open arms.

"Sugoi…" the kids breathed out in amazement. They stood inside a control room staring out an observation window out to the two massive machines. One had orange armour, its head, was a helmet-like shape with a fortress stone grey face, an emerald orb on the forward part of the helmet component, with five small red orbs for its eyes, and a simple box like point at the bottom of its supposed chin. The other behemoth was black and purple with black shoulder fins. Its head was more humanoid in appearance, with the same shade of dark purple on the upper half of its head, along with its horn, with a puce green band near the bottom of the horn, and its mouth was a lighter shade. Both units exuded an aura of fear, but yet the purple unit exuded a much more disturbing feel. For unlike its counterpart which was most likely the first of the two, this one had a more menacing feeling, which was most likely due to its head, as its white eyes seemed to stare back at the children and everyone else, as well as the thin black line on its mouth, indicating that underneath that mouth guard was most likely something so terrifying that the restraint could only do so much before succumbing to the dark force that seem to lay underneath such a beast.

Gendo kneeled down beside the children, "That children, are the Evangelions, your mother's greatest work for the past 5 years. The creation of these creatures, are for the defence of your home."

"Explaining our works are you, Gendo-kun?" the three kinds turned to see their mother's wearing what appeared to be skin-tight wet suits. Yui's, was white on the chest back and shoulders, while the rest was of a royal blue, while Tomoyo wore a pure white suit.

"Ready to being?" Gendo asked. Both nodded and hugged the man before kneeling down to their children.

Yui hugged her son tightly as she whispered in his ear, "Bye sweetie. I'll see in you in bit, I love you."

"I love you too mama," Shinji replied placing a wet kiss on her cheek.

"I'll see you two later, Kaoru, Rei," Tomoyo spoke as she held her two children tightly, as they placed sweet kisses on either sides of her face. All three children held their mothers tightly, two of them unaware of the unfortunate outcome, of never seeing them again after that moment.

"Why are there children in here?" a voice inquired. Everyone looked to the door opposite the observation window to see a grey haired man enter, with a curious expression on his face.

"The red eyed ones are Pilot Ayanami's children; the other is Chief Ikari's child," a voice replied.

"Ikari, this is not a school day. This is a very important day," he stated, in mild surprise to the fact they brought their children.

"Gomen nasai, Fuyutsuki-sensei, we brought them here," Yui explained.

"Yui-kun, Tomoyo-kun, it's your experiment today."

"That's why. We want to show the promising future to our children," Tomoyo explained.

"Very well," Fuyutsuki breathed out in defeat, and looked out the window.

"Don't mind him," Yui stated to the three children, "Now be good, and after we're done, we'll go out for ice-cream, okay?"

"Hai," they cried out in unison. Yui and Tomoyo kissed all three children, before Yui turned to Gendo and gave him a passionate kiss.

"I love you," she whispered into his ear before walking off with Tomoyo.

Gendo smiled broadly and kneeled once more before the kids, "Now please stay out of the way and be good."

"Hai."

"Prepare entry plugs," he snapped out, as he walked away from the kids and sat down on a chair, and propped his elbows onto the table, bridging his fingers in front of his face. As he looked out, he could hear people begin to work but tuned them out as he watched the two women mount the cylindrical tubes.

"Good luck."

Soon the tubes were sealed, and were inserted into the spinal columns of the units, that moments later sealed the entry point. People started to say things such as charging the LCL, first stage connections, synchrographs, and such but the children did not understand an iota of the procedures and simply stared wide eyed as the two Evangelions began to come to life. The three were mystified as they stared at the god-like towers of man, built by human blood, hands, sweat and soul.

Things seemed to be going well as both units brought up their hands and gave thumbs up and were about to conclude the experiment when things began to go wrong. Both units let out powerful, mighty beast-like roars, the purple unit breaking its mouth guard revealing a set of razor-sharp teeth, breaking their arm restraints, grabbing their heads as they began to struggling against the shoulder restraints, trying to break free. It was maddening as people started to panic; giving orders, stating reports, trying to figure out what was going on and save the pilots within, all the while trying to keep the peace. The children were scared. Not for the people around them, but for their mothers. They wanted them back and prayed that some miracle would bring them back safely. But one sadly knew the harsh truth that they would be gone, as he let six silent tears down his face, one for each of his soon to be broken family. The monsters within had broken free, as they struggled and writhe against what ever force that has assaulted or possessed them.

"Get them out of there!" Gendo bellowed, as he rushed up to the window.

"It's no good," a voice replied, "Synchronisation levels are off the charts! 230, 241, 254, oh kami-sama, it just spike to 321, 340, 389, 400!"

Silence...

MAMA!


	2. Angel Attack

**Heaven and Hell**

**Chapter I Angel Attack**

**Well, I'm a little disappointed that I've only received three reviews, but hopefully this update will draw attention. Please spread the word of this story to any and all Shinji/Rei fan. It's got fluff, it's got romance, it's got drama, and all. So please spread the word, and enjoy Chapter I of Heaven and Hell. Also, please note that I will be using ideas from the Manga as well, so to those who think Rei has gone OOC, that's only because I'm using her characteristics from the Manga. I have nothing to work with in terms of the anime. She's too bloody dry in that. Anyways, enjoy.**

"All normal lines are down due to the special state of emergency," a monotonous voice spoke from a phone.

"No good," a boy sadly muttered as he hung up the phone. The boy sighed heavily as he ran his hand through his chestnut brown hair. He looked up into the sky as the sunlight reflected off his sad cobalt blue eyes. He had a thin frame, not all that strong, and had these three thin lines on his left arm. From the joint where the arm met the body, one line trailed down in a semi-spiral to the pit of his elbow, the second one, also semi-spiralling down to his elbow, and the third ran across his chest, where it stopped over his heart. It was his birth mark, and yet the marks looked more like scars from battle. For he though, did not care, as that was the only thing he had that was truly his.

The boy let out another sigh again and stared into the phone, "I knew I shouldn't have come," he muttered as he picked up his duffle bag. He looked to the picture of the person that was supposed to come pick him up. He had long purple hair that reached about halfway down her back, brown eyes, and was apparently wearing red lipstick. She wore a yellow, thin strapped tank top, and extremely blue short shorts. Her name was Misato Katsuragi, and from a normal boy's perspective, he would've considered a hell of a hot babe, especially with the promiscuous arrow pointing right at her valley. However, he was no ordinary boy. He was abandoned by his father at a very young age, and lived with aunt and uncle until now where he's been apparently summoned by his father.

"I may not be able to meet her," he muttered, "Oh, well. Guess I'll go to a shelter." He suddenly looks up to see on the road in front of him, a pale skinned blue haired girl standing there, clad in a school uniform. A sudden rustling draws his attention, to see a flock of birds fly off. He looks back to see the girl missing, and ponders for a moment before he is overcome with a pain in his head. His knees slightly buckle as he leans against the phone booth for support.

"I definitely knew I shouldn't have come," he groaned as images of his abandonment flooded his mind, "This place has too many memories that I've fought to forget. Tou-san…why…why are you doing this? Why do you even need me?" his train of thought was suddenly interrupted by a large rumbling, pulling him out of his train, and diverting his attention from the pain in his head as he instinctively covered his ears and close his eyes.

When he opened his eyes again, he looked back, out towards the mountains were a whole squadron of UN VTOLs were backing away from something. The cause of the retreat soon revealed itself as it lumbered through the countryside and into the city. There, a massive 50 foot (15.2m) monster lumbered through. It had broad shoulders, its upper body triangularly shaped, leading down to a pair of thin nimble legs, where a set of gills breathed in and out at its hips. The creatures upper arm were also triangular shaped, and from the elbow down, its forearm was relatively thin, its hands consisting of three fingers; its arm reaching halfway down its shin. On its chest, was a red orb, surrounded by 4 curved bone coloured spikes, while on its back, six spikes could barely been seen, three lining each side of its back. On each shoulder, massive pieces of the bone coloured armour covered it which reached halfway down the upper arm. Its face was circular, with a thin and long triangle piece at the bottom, which was supposedly its chin. The skin itself was an oily black substance that shimmered in the afternoon sunlight.

"What the hell?" the boy exclaimed in surprise. A loud sound emanated from behind him, drawing his attention. He turned around to see a series of cruise missiles whiz pass off him, as they cruised through the city until it impacted the creature, arching its back as further missile impacted upon the creature. As the smoke cleared, a bright lance shot out as it struck one of the VTOLs as it crashed in a road near where the boy was, causing him to fall. The creature suddenly began to glow a bright yellow as it leapt through the air, landing on the fallen VTOL, as its foot crushed the aircraft as it exploded. The boy brought up his arms in hopes of somehow protecting himself. As he closed his eyes and shut them as he waited for the raging inferno from the explosion, a screech resonated in his ears as the light dimmed down. The boy opened his eyes to see a blue Renaults had pulled up in front of him with the driver door opened. The driver, revealed itself to be Misato Katsuragi, wearing a black knee length, sleeveless dress, with a white cross pendent, a pair of rouge drivers clothes and a pair of black sunglasses.

"Gomen ne," she called out, "I had engine trouble. Get in."

"Hai," the boy cried out as he grabbed his fallen duffle bag. He got onto his feet and ran around to the other side of the car were he opened the door, tossed his bag into the back and sat down. Before he could even buckle himself, he let out a yelp as Misato shifted gears and reversed as the creature took step forward, its foot landing where the Renaults once was. As she reverses, she turns the car to the right, and then shifts gears as she speeds forward, away from the monster. As they tore through the empty streets of Tokyo-2, the boy held on to dear life as he struggled to strap himself in. however each time his hands left the door handle and the seat, his body started to shift left and right that he had to re-grasp his anchors and prayed for some force to keep him alive.

"Sorry about this," Misato cried out as she continued to drive, "But with this place now a war zone, need to get out of here fast."

"It's no problem," the boy cried out as he held on. They drove for a bit longer, soon stopped at a lookout on an empty highway, giving a good view of the battlefield. Misato grabbed a pair of binoculars and looked out to the battlefield. As the creature entered a ravine, the squadron dispersed, in an almost frantic manner.

"Whoa it can't be," she muttered, "THEY'RE GONNA USE AN N2 MINE! GET DOWN!" She instantly pulled the boy down from the window, as moments later the area was engulfed a blinding white light, followed by a powerful shockwave. As the wave of energy approached the car, it began to rock back and forth with the approach of the wave. Upon contact, it toppled over, as it flipped over several times before landing hard on the passenger side. Soon enough both stuck out their heads, as the watched the aftermath from the nuclear weapon, as the wind from the aftershock blew their hair back.

The two of them clamoured out of the car as Misato asked, "Daijoubu desu ka?"

"Hai," the boy replied, "But there's something crunchy in my mouth."

"That's fine," she replied as the two of them leaned against the roof of the vehicle, "Are you ready?"

When the boy didn't respond, she yelled out, "Here goes!" the two of them struggled as they pushed against the roof, trying to tip it back on its four wheels. Soon the task was done, as the car was back on all fours albeit a big wreak.

Misato clapped her hands a few times before she placed her hands on her hips and faces the boy, "Thanks for the help!"

"Er," the boy meekly replied, "It was my pleasure Katsuragi-san…"

"You can call me Misato," she replied, as she whipped of her sunglasses, smiling at the boy, "It's nice to meet you, Ikari Shinji."

"Same here," he replied.

_A While Later_

"Sure. Don't worry," Misato stated as she spoke into a phone in her car, "His protection is my top priority. Prepare a car train for us; a linear one, please." Shinji continued to stare out the window as Misato spoke.

"Yes, I'll take full responsibility for him, since it was my idea to meet him. Ja." And with that, she hung up her phone. It was then Shinji looked at Misato, deep in thought. About what, he did not know, and was unsure if he wanted to know.

"Ano, Misato-san," he called out, and when she didn't respond, "Ano, Misato-san," this time a bit louder.

"Eh, what?" she quickly replied, looking at him.

"Is it okay that you did that?" he asked suspiciously, referring to the batteries they had 'acquired' and had used to power up her car.

"Ah, it's okay, no problem," she cheerily replied, "It's an emergency. We can't do anything if the car doesn't run. In addition, even if I don't look like it, I'm an international officer. So it's okay."

"That doesn't seem like a very good excuse," he replied back, in an almost bored tone.

"Boring boy," she whined, "You look so calm, despite your pretty face."

"You think so…?"

"Hmm, are you angry?" she teased, only to result in annoyed look from the boy.

She chuckles a bit as she spoke again, "Gomen, gomen. It's natural because you're a boy."

"You're childish for your age, aren't you, Misato-san?" he cheekily retorted. She looked back at him with an equally annoyed face, as she suddenly drove hard left and right, scaring the living daylights out of Shinji before she entered a tunnel. After that little stunt, Shinji kept his mouth shut in fear that Misato would do something similar to what she just did moments ago.

After about a half an hour or so of driving, they reached a blast door with a half leaf symbol with the word NERV emblazoned on the door in red. The door hissed opened as it revealed a slot wide enough to hold a car. Misato slowly brought the car in into position, as the door behind them closed to a shut, followed by the lights turning red.

"The special agency, NERV?" he curiously asked.

"Yes," she replied, "A special organization direction attached to the United Nations."

"It's the one my father belongs to, isn't it?"

"Well, yeah…do you know what he does?" Shinji remains silent, and looks ahead, as the lights turn back to a normal set, as the train began to come to life.

"My uncle told me it's an important job to protect the human race," he finally answered. Misato decided then to remain silent, as they rode the train. It was a rather awkward silence, especially now since the topic of his father was brought up. Misato looked at the boy worriedly as he stared at the dashboard in front of him, almost as if deep in thought.

'Why am I here? Why does tou-san need me? In fact, why the hell did I even come here? If I know him, he probably just needs me to do something, and then send me back. That's what happened when he was left at his uncle, and his father simply walked away, without as much as a word. That memory to this day continues to haunt his memories, despite all his efforts to block out his past, that one memory would not leave him. And he feared that being here would force him to remember every single thing that he had worked so hard to forget.

"Are we going to where my father is?" he weakly asks after some time.

"Well yeah…we are," Misato replied, "By the way, were you given and I.D. by your father?"

The boy slightly jumps in surprise and look at her for a moment before replying, "Oh, hai." He then began to rummage through his bag as pulled out a piece of paper that had been ripped up into 3 or 4 pieces, and handed to her. She looked it over, and put it down, and pulled something out from a pouch on the back of her seat.

"Then, read this," holding a book in front of his face. Shinji took a moment to look at it. It was rather thin, bound in a tape that read, 'FOR YOUR EYES ONLY,' the cover was of shade of green, with the words Welcome to NERV written on the cover in black. He took the book and stared at it intently for a while.

"It's about my father's work," he said aloud, then turning to face his driver, "Is there anything for me to do?" However Misato remained silent, her arms behind her head as she started at the ceiling of her vehicle.

"I can't say I'm surprised. He never writes me, unless he wants me to do something."

"Soka," Misato replied, "You consider him a tough customer. I feel the same." Shinji snapped his head back towards Misato, and stared at her incredulously. Suddenly the scenery changed from a dull, dark tunnel, to a massive underground dome structure.

"Sugoi," he exclaimed, as he began to examine his surroundings, "A real Geo-Front!"

"That's right," Misato proudly replied, "This is NERV's secret headquarters. It's also the foundation for rebuilding the world for the human race."

Below was a vast forest of green, with a beautiful blue lake in the middle with a green mass in the middle. The late afternoon sun made the water glow a bright orange, glimmering brightly, as it reflected the spires that hung from the ceiling. It was a sight to behold. Rails lead from the ceiling of the Geo-Front all the way down to a pyramid on the center island. There it stood proudly, a mighty pyramid of power, with an inverted pyramid pool before it, every wall bearing the NERV symbol. Its royal blue appearance boldly stood out in the forest green and ocean blue mass that is surrounded it, exuding a majestic aura of royalty.

_A While Later Again_

"That's strange. I'm sure this was the right way…" whined a highly exasperated Misato, as a set of doors opened, causing a gust of wind to blow at them.

"That's why I hate wearing skirts in this place," she grumpily mumbled, as the conveyer belt pulled them along, "Anyway, where has Ritsuko gone? Gomen ne, but I'm not familiar with this place."

"We passed here some time ago," Shinji commented, as he continued to read the handbook which hid his face.

Misato grunted slightly, then suddenly speaking in an optimistic manner, "Demo, daijoubu! All systems exist to be used." Shinji merely sighed in boredom and continued to read the manual Misato had given him. They soon reached an elevator that was supposedly would take them to where they needed to be, when the elevator stopped and the doors opened.

Misato instantly cringed in surprise as she smiled and laughed nervously, speaking in an equally nervous tone, "Uh…Hi, Ritsuko…" Ritsuko had short blond hair that slightly flared out below her eyes, green eyes, thick eyebrows, red lipstick, a pair of diamond shaped maroon earrings, and a mole below her left eye. She was merely clad in a teal one-piece swimsuit, with a white lab coat.

Ritsuko stepped forward, nudging Misato back as she did, saying, "What are you doing Captain Katsuragi? We're short of hands and time!"

Misato laughed nervously, as she slightly bowed, brought her right hand forward, her hand in a karate chop stance, held it in front of her face, the nails pointing up and said, "Gomen."

Ritsuko sighed wearily, as she directed her attention towards Shinji, "Is he the one?"

"Yes," Misato replied normally, "According to Marduk's report, he's the 'Third Child'."

"Nice to meet you," Ritsuko greeted.

"Hai," he responded, looking up from the handbook.

Misato smirked as she spoke, "He's very much like his father…neither one is loveable."

For the rest of the trip to wherever they were suppose to go, Shinji had remained silent, his nose in the book as he absorbed the information the handbook had to offer. As they went along, Shinji caught some things, such as status of a Shogouki (Unit One) chances of activating is very low, something about an 09-system, B-Type equipment, and other stuff, but Shinji didn't really pay attention, as he did not believe it concerned him whatsoever, so he let them talk. Upon reaching the top of the escalator they seemed to have gotten on without his attention, the walked down yet another hallway until they mounted a boat, and sped off to the other side. When they reached the other side, they got onto a platform, walked up a small set of stairs and entered where everything was pitch black, save for the pillar of light from the door.

Once they had entered, the door behind them closed shut, causing Shinji to jump in surprise, "Huh! It's pitch black." Suddenly a spotlight engaged as it revealed a giant purple head with white eyes. Shinji jumped back in surprise as he stared at the massive machine before him. It was purple, with two red slashes under each of its eyes, and one above both, and in-between its eyes; was a long horn. Its mouth was of a lighter shade of purple, in which it had a crooked line running across his face, forming what could be consider an evil grin.

"A face…A gigantic robot…," he muttered as he started at the monster. Suddenly, the pain from earlier that day came back to him, as he fell to his knees, clutching his head tightly, the book now forgotten on the bridge they stood on.

He groaned loudly as he yelled out, "No, no, no, no, please, I don't want these." He let out a painful yell as he was flooded with images. He saw himself as a 4 year old toddler hugging his mother in the odd suit that she wore, how she entered Evangelion Unit 01, but never came out, how his father became cold and distant, he instantly remembered the pain from the incident, and every single thing that happened that day. He remembered the hurt, the pain, the sadness, the loneliness, and even the anger of how his father changed after that day.

Shinji gasps as the pain subsided, looking up at the face of the machine as he utters, "Evangelion."

Misato suddenly looks at him in surprise, "But…how did you know what it's called?"

"He was here when he was 4," Ritsuko explained, eliciting a gasp of shock from Misato before she redirected her attention towards Shinji, "I'm glad you remember Shinji-kun. This is as you know, Shogouki. It was built in secrecy. This is mankind's last chance. This is also, the second of your mother's two creations."

"So…this is what my father's been working on?"

"Correct," a voice bellowed out. The three of them suddenly look up to a platform above Unit 01's head. There stood a man clad in a black uniform, with a red turtle neck, and the zippers and the cuffs of his tunic were gold. He appeared to be the age of over 50. He had dark chestnut hair, much like Shinji, a large beard, his face showing signs of aging along his cheeks, nose, and the lower part of his forehead. He also wore a pair of circular tinted glasses that hid the true colour behind his eyes.

"It's been a long time."

"Tou-san…" the boy weakly stated, instantly looking away from him. A painful silence settled in as the two simply waited for one or the other to say anything.

After a moment of silence, he smirked and ordered, "Move out."

"Move out!" Misato cried out in surprise, looking straight at Ritsuko, "Zerogouki is frozen," then looked to Unit 01 and back, "You don't mean that you're activating Shogouki?"

Ritsuko simply stared back as she coolly replied, "We have no choice."

"Wait a minute," Misato protested, "We can't have Rei pilot it!" then something really bad hit her, "We have no pilots!"

"One has just arrived."

"Are you serious?" she asked in a near growl

"Ikari-Shinji-kun," Ritsuko called, drawing the boy's attention, "You will pilot it."

"But it took Ayanami Rei seven months to synchronize with Eva," Misato further protested, "He just arrived. It's impossible."

"He just needs to take a seat," Ritsuko countered, "We don't expect him to do any more than that."

"But…"

"At present," Ritsuko interrupted, "Intercepting the Angel's attack is our top priority, even if there is little potential of synchronizing with Eva. We have no choice. Do you understand, Captain Katsuragi?"

"You may be right…" she weakly replied, in a defeated tone.

"Tou-san," Shinji dark called out, "Why did you call me?"

"For exactly the reason you think."

"Do you mean that I should pilot this, and fight against the thing I saw?"

"Of course," was his cold reply.

"NO WAY!" he bellowed as tears welled up in his eyes, "Why are you saying this now! I thought you didn't want me!"

"I called because I have a use for you."

"I won't do it," he angrily replied, "I WON'T LET WHAT HAPPEN TO KAA-SAN HAPPEN TO ME! How can I even do it when I haven't seen this thing for over 10 years? Answer me that."

"Listen to her explanation."

"No…I can't! It's impossible…I can't allow myself to become another victim of that thing. It took away kaa-san. What chance is there that I won't take me too?"

"You will pilot it now. If not just go home!" As Shinji's father says these words, every personnel present, could only stare at the boy as they waited for his response.

Shinji's mind was racing. He didn't know what to do. He saw the destruction of what that thing was doing, and how so far nothing could stop them. And yet, he wanted to know why his father didn't keep him, and simply trained him. So many questions ran through his mind, so many of them unanswered. Images continued to flood his mind, of his mother, his true father, a lavender haired woman, a blue haired girl with her twin brother of grey hair, both of them with shocking red eyes, even a massive orange Evangelion with 5 eye balls with practically no face. It was all too overwhelming for him, as he started to cry from the images and memories.

Suddenly the structure shuddered violently from an attack from the surface.

"That bastard has found us," he muttered, but was heard regardless, not that he cared. Suddenly another violent explosion occurred, as the entire building shuddered from the force of the attack.

"Shinji, there's not time," Ritsuko stated.

Shinji looks to Misato who stares back at him with her arms crossed and says, "Please get in."

Shinji looks down, "Now way! After coming all this way, it's ridiculous. I didn't want to remember any of this, but now it's all back," he started to clench and unclench his fist, "I can't do it. I won't do it; I don't want to do it. YOU CAN'T MAKE ME DO IT!"

Misato lowered herself and stared into Shinji's tear stained face, "Shinji…why did you come here?" Shinji just sniffs and looks away, as he continued to silently cry, "Don't run away from your father, or above that, from yourself."

"No," he growled out, "I will not become a tool that will react upon your beckoning."

Seeing that Shinji's resolve was unchanged, "Fuyutsuki," Shinji's father called out, "Wake Rei."

"Is she available?"

"She isn't dead."

"I understand," the voice grunted.

"Rei," he called out.

"Hai," a near inaudible voice replied.

"The back-up turned out to be useless. You will pilot again."

"Hai."

Ritsuko stared at Shinji in disgust for a moment before she looked up somewhere and called out, "Reconfigure Shogouki's systems for Rei. Restart!"

"Ryoukai," a voice replied as it over went the procedures, and the two women walked off in two directions. Misato towards where they came from, Ritsuko to the other end. As they began to reconfigure Unit 01, it's eyes went blank with a click, and was replaced by darkness.

Shinji on the other hand turned around and stared down at the red liquid that Unit 01 was immersed in, as he started to curse himself. He was really regretting ever coming here, as he now once again had to endure the memories of the accident. He had wanted to forget his past, but now, thanks to his father, it has once again returned to haunt his very thoughts and dreams. He hated those memories when he was four. By the time he was 6, he was finally able to suppress all of them save for the image and memory of his father walking away from him, and that alone caused severe states of depression periodically throughout the 10 years he spent with his aunt and uncle. He continued to curse himself, as well as he started to call himself weak and useless, and how he should just die.

Suddenly a ding from his right attracted his attention. He looked towards an elevator to see a doctor and two nurses wheeling in a gurney. As the gurney approached, he could see that someone, clad in white was lying on the bed, with an IV drip attached to the arm. When the gurney approached him, he saw the person, to be a girl. She had porcelain white skin, neck length azure blue hair, and a pair of deep crimson red eyes. She wore what appeared to be a skin tight wetsuit, with the arms exposed. She was covered in bandages all over her body, including her left eye. As they passed, the girl simply had an emotionless look, as she stared up at the ceiling, not even acknowledging the boy she just passed.

The gurney comes to a stop on the other side of the bridge Shinji stood on, as the doctor disconnects the drip from her arm, and then left her. The pale skinned girl sits up on the bed, and turns towards the machine. Shinji couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt and a feeling of familiarity as he watches the girl's face contort in pain, her breathing extremely laboured, as she tries to find the strength to even sit on the bed. Suddenly the building shudders even more violently from another explosion, causing the girl to fall off the bed. Even Shinji falls from the attack, and looks up to see a few of the overhead lights suddenly snap of the supports and fell towards him.

"Watch out!" Misato bellows. However Shinji didn't move, and simply brought up his arms in the feeble hopes that it would somehow save him. He waited for the impact, but it never came. He suddenly looks up to see that the Evangelion had brought up its right arm, and shielded him from the impact. Shinji heard a few things being said, but he didn't care, as he immediately got up and ran up to the fallen girl.

He supported her shoulders with his left arm as he held her close, in hopes to bring her some small comfort. She gasped in pain, as her injuries tore through her. She continued to gasp in pain, as her breathing became extremely laboured. He also noticed that some of the wounds must've reopened, for when he looked at his right hand; he saw blood, her blood, on his hand. He looked back to Unit 01 to see its eyes come back to life, and then looked back to the girl in his arms. It was then he noticed something on her left arm, which made him gasp.

On the upper arm, a single line trailed from the joint where the arm met the shoulder, a scar-like line ran from that point, down to the pit of her elbow. He then looked to his right arm and pulled up the sleeves of both the dress shirt and the blue undershirt, revealing his 3 scar birth mark. He looked at the one that led to the pit of his elbow, then to hers to see that they ran down the same way. Another pang of pain ran through his head, as he groaned, and clutched his head. Suddenly the image of a 4 year old, azure hair girl, with red eyes, wearing a red dress, and buckle shoes appeared in his head.

He gasps as he realises the girl in his arms as he whispers, "Rei-chan?"

The girl opens her one eye and looks up at him, then tilts her head to his arm to see his scars and whispers, "You came back, Ikari-san."

"There's no way you can pilot it. Just rest Rei-chan," he held her close as he looked up to Misato, "I'll do it. I'll pilot it!" he then looks down and whispers, "For you, I will pilot."

"You are not forgiven, Ikari-san," Rei whispers before the pain finally overwhelmed her and she fell unconscious.

**And that concludes Chapter I. Stay tuned for Chapter II, which will follow episode two. By the way, can anyone get me Volumes 1-4 for the Evangelion Manga? Because I want to know what happens in the initial stages. Plus do note that the order of angels will follow the Manga, not the series. At least until the 9th Angel, which is the one where Shinji gets absorbed into Unit 01, in which that's the 14th in the anime. Well anyways, that's all from me.**

**Cheers Ja ne**


	3. My Promise

**Heaven and Hell**

**Chapter II My Promise**

**Well, I seemed to have attracted some attention. That's good, very good indeed. Anyways, I know that a lot of you guys are wondering what she meant by saying, "You are not forgiven, Ikari-san," but that little tidbit will be locked away in my head for a few more chapters. At least until the embarrassing encounter, or maybe even further. But don't worry, you will understand soon enough. Also, I plan to OOC some of the characters. Shinji for sure will have some differences, but there are some of his aspects that I will keep for sure.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Evangelion, simple as that, so leave me the heck alone all of you annoying bastards.**

'What did she mean by that?' Shinji wondered to himself as he laid Rei's unconscious form on the gurney as he watched her wheeled away by the same doctor and two nurses. His mind was swimming in questions. First and foremost was how she addressed him. She called him Ikari-san. He could understand Ikari-kun, since they haven't seen each other for 10 years, but Ikari-san, it was as if she no longer at least acknowledged him as the childhood friend of hers he was. It was all very confusing for him. He cared for her, but then again, she was one of the many things he ended up burying when he suppressed everything he saw at Gehrin. It was only now, the memories started to flow back to him.

Suddenly his thoughts were cut off, "Shinji-kun, c'mon, we need to head up, and prep you." Shinji looked back at the other side of the bridge, to see Misato standing there, waiting for him. He nodded, and immediately ran up to her, where she took him to an elevator. As they walked towards the elevator, Shinji continued his thoughts. He had noticed that there was something in her eyes that really gave him the creeps. They say that the eyes are the windows to the soul. And yet, her eyes showed absolute darkness. A world where light has not touched for years, a world filled with darkness, a world where emotions did not exist, a world where such things as love, happiness, joy, valued by people all over the world, simply did not exist. Shinji now vividly remembered seeing such things in her eyes once. But now, it seemed that someone had delved into her soul, and had stripped her of everything that made her human. Even her voice, that once held human emotions, was now the sound of a machine, speaking in a monotonous tone, save for the one thing she said, which he could've sworn, was out of anger.

"Shinji-kun," Misato called out, placing a hand on his shoulder, "Are you alright? You seemed troubled?"

Shinji shook his head, "It's alright Misato-san, I was just thinking, that's all. By the way, how long has Rei been working here?"

"Uh," Misato thought for a moment before she finally answered, "I believe for the last 3-4 years. Otherwise, I don't know anything else about her. Why you ask?"

He let out a discontented sigh and looked down, "She's not the Rei-chan I remember. That's all." He suddenly brought up his right hand to his shoulder, and squeezed it.

"If you want, I can arrange for you two to meet and sort things out," she offered.

Shinji however shook his head, "No, Misato-san. I can't talk to her. I don't think she would listen to me. It's best I should just leave her alone."

"Shinji-kun, you shouldn't run away from things."

"No, it's better that I leave it as it is. I've already done enough damage. I don't need to make the problem worse than it already is."

"Shinji-kun," Misato breathed out as she watched him walk up to the plug. Already she could see that he was a troubled kid, but how troubled she was yet to see. Shinji approached a technician wearing an orange coverall, who gave him a pair of white clips, before he was relieved by Ritsuko.

"Alright Shinji-kun," she began, "those clips are A-10 Nerve Connectors. They will allow you to pilot the Evangelion. Evangelion operates primarily on thought, with the control yolks augmenting some of the restricted movements. You wear them on the top of your head, and remember something extremely important. Do not, I cannot stress it enough, do not remove the connectors while you are inside. Doing so would damage your synapses for who knows how long." Shinji nodded affirmatively, and tentatively placed the clips in his hair, and waited for further instructions.

"Piloting it is like moving your own body," she explained. "As I've stated before, these machines operate on thought, so therefore if you concentrate hard enough on a particular movement, it will move as you desire it. Now when you enter the Entry Plug," motioning towards a cylindrical tube behind her, "you will notice two control yolks. Those as I have explained, are meant to augment some of the movements which you cannot personally do while sitting. Do you understand?"

"Hai, wakateru," Shinji quietly replied. 'He wants me to pilot this! This is insane! Even if I just have to use my thoughts, I don't know how to pilot. I haven't even seen this thing for 10 years, and he expects me to pilot it the day I come back! I guess it was to be expected. It's not like there was going to be a happy reunion or anything. However, I was hoping Kaoru, Rei and I would have such.'

"Akagi-san," said Shinji, "do you happen to know a Kaoru Ayanami?"

Ritsuko blinked a few times and thought for a moment before she shook her head, "I'm not familiar with the name. What's his relation to the First Child?"

"Her brother," he dejectedly replied with a sigh, as he advanced towards the plug.

"I didn't know she had a brother," was the general discussion as he settled in. he found it peculiar that on one knew who Kaoru was. He also wondered why he wasn't here. The Kaoru he knew was fiercely loyal to Rei, and wouldn't dare leave her alone with anyone. He wondered why he'd leave. But if he knew Kaoru, despite they were 4 years old when he himself left, Kaoru must've had a good reason to do such a thing.

Suddenly the hatch above him closed shut, hissing as the locks came into place, engulfing him in darkness, not that he minded. He more or less grew up in darkness, so he wasn't all that surprised the entry plug was dark. Everything around him revolved in darkness. The clothes on his back, his hair colour, even his home with his uncle was shrouded in darkness. He didn't hate the dark, but he didn't like it either. It was just there in his life, consuming his very being. He didn't mind. He didn't mind being consumed, nor did he mind death. Had he the guts, he probably would've killed himself long time ago. But here he was, in an entry plug, engulfed in darkness that would probably become his tomb.

The plug suddenly jolted as he felt the plug begin an included descent. Towards what, he guessed to be the Evangelion. As the plug descended, he suddenly scowled as the word of his father telling him to go home rang in his ears. He felt his blood started to boil as he realised how cold his father's words were, and how callous he was with Shinji's feelings. He used Rei as a bargaining tool for crying out loud. He used a highly injured 14 year old girl, who was Shinji's childhood friend, as a means to force him to pilot. If he didn't see Rei injured, he probably would've gone home. He continued to seethe in anger over his father's words and actions, as his hands balled up into tight fists. Not only did he use Rei as bargaining chip to sway Shinji to pilot the Eva, he suddenly realised how his father had considered himself useless until today. He couldn't believe that his father, who had left him with his uncle for 10 years, suddenly recalls him, just to pilot a machine that destroyed his family, and took away his mother.

"My father never needed me…But now he's restored this thing that needs me?" he angrily growled. "What a joke! Well I'm up for the challenge. I'm not afraid to die! I'll show him who's weak!" He suddenly grunted when he felt the plug came in contact with something, but instantly felt sick as the tube twisted into position. Into what part of the Eva, he would later find out.

He started to hear some sort of techno babble about first contact and such as the plug lit up, revealing its copper interior. Regaining his cool, Shinji stared ahead into the concaved end of the tube, and waited patiently. Suddenly the plug began to flood with some orange liquid, which was filling the plug up at a rapid rate. He began to panic as it quickly reached up to his waist.

"Wha-wh-what's going on!" he managed out before he held his breath as he became immersed in the strange liquid.

"Don't be alarmed," Ritsuko assured through a radio. "One your lungs are saturated in LCL, you'll be able to undergo direct oxygen exchange." Inside, he was unable to hold his breath any longer involuntary exhaled, and inhaled the orange liquid, instantly gagged as he brought his hands up to his nose.

"Oh kami-sama," he choked out, "I didn't expect that!"

"Shinji-kun, doshitte?" Ritsuko asked.

"Good lord, it reeks of blood," he sputtered as he breathed in the liquid through his mouth only to gag again, "God, it tastes like it too! How the hell can I pilot like this?"

"Remember, this is a thought using machine," Ritsuko explained. "The LCL merely acts as a medium for you when you operate your Eva. Its secondary function is to act as a cushion for you should things, get out of hand, and also to provide life support in the event of a shut down." Ritsuko then went to issuing orders. Shinji sat there as he contemplated his situation. It was one hell of a mess he was in, and he was so unsure where this would lead him to. He'd go with the flow for now, but his mind already started to formulate a plan for when it was time to leave. He considered it one of his greatest skills. To know when it was time to pack up and leave. It usually just happened before the going got tough. He would slink away and disappear, only to surface elsewhere new, where he knew no one, and thus allowing him to keep his heart closed. He didn't want to be close to anyone, so he always left before any real bonds were formed, good or bad. He didn't want to be close, so he usually avoided contact, and only made necessary connections with people. During all those times he's slipped in and out, he's never considered what he did to people with his disappearances, not that he cared.

They entry plug suddenly lit up in an array of brilliant lights and colours, soon replacing the dull orange and metal interior of the tube, with his surroundings. He looked around to see the shoulders and arms of his Evangelion restrained, technicians everywhere were scrambling to get everything ready, even the bridge he just stood upon, right in front of his face, so to speak. Shinji simply shrugged as he leaned back into his seat and stared ahead. He was surprised that the taste, feel, and smell of the viscous LCL was no longer noticeable, but again, he didn't care. He just wanted to get this over with and then leave.

As the bridge before his, or rather the Evangelion's face began to back away, along with the arm restraints, Shinji's mind fell to a certain blue haired girl. She had truly grown, and was more beautiful than ever. She always had this angelic radiance, with her ethereal white skin, her azure hair, even her piercing crimson eyes, along with the various dresses she wore, she was almost an angel, except she lacked wings. And now, she had begun to blossom. Her bust had developed well, into what he guessed to be a b-cup, along with her hips, which added to all the subtle curves of her body. Her hair, continued to accent her facial features, as he skin in conjunction, as it really brought out her eyes. For a moment he thought that the girl he laid upon the gurney was the beautiful happy carefree girl he remembered, when her words of non-forgiveness rang through his head.

So drawn into his thoughts of Rei that he had not noticed that he was ready to go until he felt the Evangelion shudder as it locked onto something. He looked ahead to see in front of him, the holding area where his Evangelion was docked, with several puddles of the red coolant the Eva was just soaked in. He looked around to see that he was on a platform above the area his Evangelion was stored. Above him, a series of panels opened as it lead up to the surface. Where along the surface was his best guess. Seeing that there was nothing left to do but swallow it and go, he took a few deep breathes as he prepared for the up coming battle.

'This is it,' he thought, 'It's time to do or die.'

"Ready to go," he declared.

"HASHIN!"

Shinji grunted as the construct shuddered violently. He was instantly pressed into the seat from the g-forces of the elevator was resting upon. Shinji felt like a human pancake as the Evangelion continued its ascent to the surface. His insides felt like they were being crushed, the blood being constricted from reaching his organs. He couldn't breath, couldn't open his eyes, he felt like he was going to die before he would even fight the angel, let alone seeing it or even reaching the surface. His ascent immediately halted as the inertia carried him up, as his thighs bolted up against his harness, keeping him from going up any further. He swore that would leave a mark on his legs later.

He looked a head to see the black being from earlier that afternoon standing there, about a block away, almost seemingly sizing itself up as it prepared for battle. Already Shinji could feel his courage and resolve ebb away as the moment of truth drew near.

As the battle preparations drew to a close, an observer serves the field. Rei laid in her bed, at her request, had a link-up of the battle. She had not only requested a link-up of the battle, but also with the entry plug. She knew she could connect if she wanted or needed to, or needed to, but was satisfied with what she had. She had regained consciousness during the initial preparations, and had attained her link-up in the final stages. Why she wanted the link-up, somewhat confused her, but she disregarded it as nothing.

Just prior to the launch, Shinji had a stern, confidant face, showing that he was ready to go. However when his Eva had surfaced, his confidence immediately faltered, his facing showing various signs of fear and apprehension. 'Why does Ikari-san falter now? Is it possible that coming face to face with such a creature as the angel weakened his resolve? If so, he is doom to failure. She tried to make herself either look away or call a nurse to shut off the screen, yet found herself inexplicably drawn to the battle at hand.

'Why am I drawn to the battle at hand? I can clearly see Ikari-san has no hope of victory, and yet I find myself unable to ignore the battle. It is as if a part of me wishes to watch him and see him return. How is this possible? I had buried that part of me long ago, and had isolated it during the past 4 years. Now they seem to have resurfaced, but to what purpose? I still have not forgotten nor forgiven for his actions those many years ago. He may have the answers. I shall talk to him, only after his punishment.'

Shinji felt a final jolt as the last restraints were released and his Eva slouched over, as it waited for an input of commands. Shinji was at a loss. He didn't know what to do, as he had never sat in an entry plug until today. He suddenly cringed when the angel began its advance towards him and the Eva.

He closed his eyes shut as he started to mutter, "I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna-"

_Protect her…_

"Huh?" Shinji's head instantly bobbed up and started to look around, trying to find the source of the voice. "Who said that?"

_You promised…_

"Promise?" Shinji thought for a moment of who he could've promised to and to what he promised when it hit him. "Kaoru-kun?"

_Flashback_

"Shinji-kun," said a grey haired boy.

"Hai, Kaoru-kun?" replied a brown haired boy, eyeing him curiously.

"Promise you protect Rei?"

The boy thought for a moment before he answered confidently, "I promise." He then stuck out his pinkie finger, which the grey haired boy took with his own, and the two shook on it.

_End Flashback_

"That's right," Shinji murmured in realization. "I promised him and myself I'd protect her." He then grabbed the controls, and yelled, "AND THAT'S WHAT I'M GOING TO DO!" Without even asking for instructions, he pushed his control yolks forward, his mind visualised charging forward.

As Rei watched Unit 01 lurch forward into an aggressive charge, he mind was processing what she barely managed to hear, 'Kaoru nii-san said he had someone who had promised to protect me before he left. Is Ikari-kun the one? Is he the protector he promised me? How can he be the one, after what he did? Another question I shall ask forthcoming his punishment.'

Shinji let out a battle cry as his Eva lurched forward into a headlong charge. He didn't know how he did it, but quickly discovered it was almost like moving his body. It was truly overwhelming. He could feel the ground under his very feet despite his sitting position, the wind in his ace as he charged although he himself wasn't moving, the shoulder finds on his shoulders, and oddly enough a restraint of some sort on his mouth. However little of this mattered as his mind was focused solely on destroying the thing that could possible hurt Rei, who he'd promised to protect.

The two massive beings collided in a furious charge as Unit 01 rammed its shoulder into its two faces, sending it reeling back from the impact. For a moment, Shinji wondered where his ideas of how to fight it came in, but left it for another time as he continued his attack. He charged forward again, preparing to jump into the air when the angel brought up its hand and rammed a lance-like object from its hand, into his abdomen. Shinji let out a painful yell, and gripped his abdomen. His mind was in a haze. He could barely hear anything around him, as his mind was now divided to destroying the angel, and the throbbing on the left side of his abdomen.

He managed to hear someone mention something about a Prog-Knife in his shoulders before whatever was driving him before kicked in again. He brought his right hand up to the shoulder fine as the casing opened, revealing a knife hiding within. He immediately withdrew the blade from its sheath as it hummed to life. He felt the lance rescinding from his abdomen, but reacted by reaching out and held onto the lance and rode with it as he slammed his knife into the shoulder of the creature.

It showed no vocal signs of pain, but the way the body shuddered was enough to tell that it was in pain. He brought up his left leg and kicked hard against the red core of the creature. As he kicked, the blade shifted, and ended up cutting a large gash on the arm of the creature, and also, the core suddenly formed a small crack. It careened through the city, landing in the outskirts of the city, sparing a lot of the buildings from any possible damage.

Rei watched the screen in surprise. She had expected Shinji attempts to pilot the Evangelion would end up making a fool of himself, but there he was, exceeding any and all expectations. He was thrashing about, using any means he had as he forced the angel out of the city. Rei looked to Shinji's plug displayed to his face contorted greatly in concentration. He was letting out mighty yells as he pounded the angel's body with his knife. With each stab, blue blood spouted, staining the mountain side and the Eva with its blood. On the Eva, the original colour configuration of purple, green and black was clouded by blue. Blood was dripping off every edge and end of the Eva.

'Ikari-kun, you have exceeded all possible expectations. How is this possible?'

"Must…protect…Rei-san…" Shinji grunted in between blows, unaware he was tapped. Rei's face bore the look of surprise as she heard this. She directed he attention back to the screen to the Eva Unit 01 continue to slam its knife into a random spot, withdrawing the blade and stab again. As the enormous mecha stabbed, splashing the blue blood everywhere, Rei could see that Shinji was intent on killing the angel utterly until it couldn't move any further.

She let out a roar as he continued to visually stab the angel as the Eva brought his visual impulse to life. He raised his arm back to strike again when its left arm took a chance and lanced out and grabbed the head. It immediately began a brutal assault as it fired the lance in its arm continuously through the palm of its hand, into the right of the Unit. Strike after strike, a crunching sound could be heard as the skull plating continued to absorb its punishment. Shinji grunted in pain, holding his right eye as the lance consistently stabbed, stabbed, and stabbed his right eye as he felt his skull cracking under the pressure. He yelled painfully as he felt the lance puncture through his eye and the back of his head as he careened back into the city.

The Eva slammed up against a building as its arms flailed. Its right arm slammed into a building, its hand still clutching the Prog-Knife while its left arm landed on top of a building. Its head slumped forward as red blue spurted from its eye and the back of its head. Shinji inside was fading in and out of consciousness. Tried as he might to stay awake, he found himself losing badly as he was slowly being engulfed by darkness. As he slipped into unconsciousness, an image of an injured Rei in a horribly tattered school uniform flashed.

He suddenly gasped as he bolted upright to find himself in a white room. To his right, a glass wall showed the Geo-Front with the morning sun shining brightly. The room was empty, spacious, devoid of any and any thing and life save for himself and his bed. He looked around as he contemplated his surroundings. He suddenly sighed as he leaned back into his bed. He stared into the ceiling for some time, trying to figure out what happened. However everything after remembering his promise was a blur. He even wondered if what happened to him was real. He recalled some sort of pain in his eye, but that was about it.

He suddenly gasped as he sat up and felt his right eye. As he touched it he felt a stinging sensation. It hurt quite a lot, but he felt no mark, no cuts, not even a scratch of some sort. He looked into the metal nightstand next to him to see that there was indeed no mark. He felt the back of his head for something, and found a painful stinging sensation, but that was it. No cuts, no bruises, he hoped, not even any bandages were wrapped around his head. Finally deciding that staying in bed would do him no god, he got out of bed and left his room.

As he roamed the halls, he ended up seeing Rei on a gurney up ahead of him. He approached her and gave her a weak smile. Rei started back at him for some time, her deadpanned expression never changed. Shinji felt highly uncomfortable, under the scrutiny of that particular stare of Rei. He was used to a soft, cheery expression she always wore. That alone prevented him from running away from the Rei before him. He was slightly surprised that he had this confident, considering that everything else in his life, he ran away from. But even as a child, Rei always seemed to give him strength. There was just something about her that he could never really deny.

"I'll keep my promise to Kaoru-kun, Rei-san," Shinji whispered confidently to Rei. "I don't know what I did to make you angry, but I hope we can be friends again."

"Perhaps," Rei replied. They stared at one another for some time, neither of them moving. They nurse that was assigned to push Rei's gurney saw the two, and waited patiently for them to finish.

"I expect an explanation concerning your departure when we next meet." She nodded towards the nurse who immediately began to push her down the hall.

Shinji started at the shrinking gurney, completely dumbfounded, as she eventually disappeared down the hall. 'My departure, but I never planned to leave unless…she didn't mean…she thought I abandoned her? But…how…why…does Kaoru-kin think the same as well? Or did he leave around the same time? This is so confusing. I need time to think."

"So you're awake, Shinji-kun." The boy turned his head back to see Misato stand behind him with her arms crossed and a broad smile on her face. Shinji merely nodded.

"I'm here to pick you up. C'mon, I'm taking you to your private quarters."

"Sure," he deadpanned as he looked ahead.

"You okay living alone?" she asked concernedly, "If you submit a petition, you could arrange to live with your father…"

"Nah – that's alright," he exhaustedly replied, "I'd rather keep my distance. I don't think he'd want me around anyways. Can we just get out of here? I don't like it here."

"Sure, c'mon, let's get you out of those hospital clothes and get some food," Misato offered, placing a hand on his shoulder. Shinji nodded and let her lead him out.

As they walked Shinji mentally said to himself, 'Maybe it won't be so bad.'

**Well anyways, that concludes Chapter II. Please, give me your thoughts and your reviews, and I shall see you guys on the flip side, or rather in Chapter III.**


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